Gifting

We are rolling into the biggest gifting season of the year! There will be parties and caroling and white elephant exchanges. A quick girls get together or a gingerbread house decorating party (my favorite!). But truly, its the little gifts throughout the year that make a big impact. Here are four gifts I gave this month that hopefully inspire you!

Coaches Gift

We just finished Fall Baseball season. It was an AMAZING fall for the NW, weather-wise. Besides this weekend, I think we had one game rained out. It was pretty incredible.

My husband has been my son’s coach since t-ball days (the past 3+ years) so this was the first time he had someone else coaching him. And the results: my son loved it! Our coach this season had such great energy and drive for the game. He inspired with persistence for each of those kids to be their best. He wasn’t mean. He didn’t yell. He just had the best balance between passion and firmness in teaching the kids the game of Baseball. It was really fun to watch. Thank you Matt!

Gift: Yeti cooler! Add a gift certificate to fill it.

Team Gift

In addition to Fall Ball, my son also played rec soccer this year. I need to remind him he almost didn’t play 🙂 But when I said, “Trevor’s playing!” (one of his best buds), he said yes. 🙂 And what a season it’s been. They have won every game (except 1 tie–with a stronger ref, we would have won) and all but 2 kids have scored a goal. They have worked so well as a team: passing, guarding, and covering the whole field, just like the “big kids”. It’s been really fun to watch! Today’s our last game of the season and we are hoping those last two boys get a chance to also score. Cross our fingers!!!

Gift: Gatorade, goldfish & a cutie for after the game.

Hostess Gift

Do you ever get invited to a spontaneous dinner party? Or “come over for a glass of wine!” Here’s a tip I learned from Colin Cowie: have a gift closet! Ok, so I don’t have a beautifully closet lined with beautiful metal framed shelves with perfectly wrapped gifts lining those shelves. (Don’t I wish!) What I do have is more like a closet BEHIND a closet that I CHUCK fabric and boxes and off-season pillows and hang old art from former homes we’ve lived in. There are no windows, only one florescent overhead light. There is an old desk that my husband made that houses my sewing machine, serves as a wrapping station and it’s where our ironing board lives, 24/7. The room is not a pretty sight…in fact I do not know if it will EVER be Instagram-ready! It’s horrible!!!

BUT! In there, among all the clutter, I try to have at least 2-3 pre-wrapped hostess gifts to grab for those spontaneous parties. Sometimes they are a set of cocktail dishes, or a beautifully scented candle. But my favorite hostess gift is infused oil room scents. You know, with the bamboo reeds that slowly release the oil into the air? When this type of room freshener first came out, I remember my girlfriend paying close to $50 for hers! Oh my goodness!!! I couldn’t believe it! So expensive!!! Now, there are lots of more reasonable varieties. I usually grab mine at HomeGoods, Nordstrom Rack or Target. They are perfect for a bathroom where they will make the room smell so lovely without having the fire hazard of an open flame in a room you don’t frequent often. (My fireman friend, Scott, would appreciate that! 😉 )

Note: I put a post-it-note on the outside of what the scent is on the inside. That way you can customize which one you choose for the person you are giving it to!

Gift: Infused Oil Air Fresheners

Thank You Gift

My last suggestion for gift giving is baked goods! This week there was an incident on my daughter’s bus. An 8th grader was being a di#* and talking back to the bus driver. The bus driver stayed strong and was able to defuse the situation with all 100+ naive eyes watching and ears listening. He kept our kids safe and also taught them how to be respectful and not put up with poor behavior.

So…I baked him a loaf of bread, wrapped it in parchment paper and had my daughter deliver it to him the next day. His reaction told me this probably doesn’t happen very often…being appreciated for the little things. We all need to stop and appreciate the little goodness in every day.

Be the good in someones day! – April Carter

I hope I gave you some good ideas for gifting the important people in your lives!

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